Balkan, Klezmer, and American songs and dance music
The NAMA Orchestra, an offshoot from the Aman Folk Ensemble, was from 1974 to 1986 probably the country's best known Balkan folk dance band, and part of the klezmer revival of the 1970's. Here are their "greatest hits" -- Serbian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Greek, Israeli, Yiddish, klezmer, American, and Latin -- by a remarkable group of musicians.
Folk dancers and groups take note, you should have this in your collection. It has about 45 minutes of dance music, plus some other nice things you may not have heard. In response to comments that some of our recordings were too fast for a lot of dancers, I have digitally slowed down a few of them. (Without changing the pitch! Isn't science wonderful?!) Following is info on the songs (minus the accent marks):
BEST OF NAMA (NAMA 5 CD)
1. NAMA Lesnoto Medley (Macedonian) -- Our most successful recording, used by folk dance groups all over. Four lovely Macedonian songs in 7/8: Oj ti pile, Zalna majka, Bitola moj roden kraj, and Makedonsko devojce. Sung by Trudy Israel and Susan North, with violins (Miamon Miller & Loretta Kelley), flute (Neil Siegel), accordion (David Owens), guitar (Chris Yeseta), and bass (Andy King).
2. Koga srce boli (Serbian, U sest) -- Vocal, with two frulas (pennywhistles) played by Mark Levy & Neil. Originally written and recorded by the Bajic Brothers.
3. Siko horepse, kukli mu (Greek/Turkish, Syrto) -- Vocal, with clarinet solo by Stewart Mennin.
4. Gergebunarsko horo (Bulgarian, Pravo horo) -- Played on Bulgarian village (bitov) instruments, gajda (Mark), kaval (Neil), gudulka (Miamon), tambura (Chris), tupan (Phil Harland). Starts slower, speeds up.
5. Eleno mome (Bulgarian) -- Vocal, with clarinet and accordion. Played in 7/8 and 13/16.
6. Kukunjesce (Serbian) -- Tamburica orchestra, lead vocal & prim by Chris Yeseta. Starts slower, speeds up.
7. Bucimis (Bulgarian) -- Thracian dance tune in 15/16, on clarinet, accordion, violin. Starts slower, speeds up.
8. Carlama (Serbian) - Lively dance tune with many variations on frulas, violins, and accordion.
9. Jove, malaj mome (Bulgarian) -- Striking melody-and-drone vocal, with gajda & kaval solos.
10. Ruka (Bulgarian) -- Accordion solo with violins. Fits the choreography of Dobrudjanska reka.
11. Snosti sakav da ti dojdam (Macedonian, Bavno oro / Lesnoto) -- Seldom heard vocal version.
12. Salty Dog Rag (American, Round dance / Schottische) -- Swingy version with nostalgic 3-part harmony, fiddle, guitar, and tack piano solos. Not as fast as on NAMA 2. [c 1951 Edward Crowe, John Gordy]
13. Hana'ava babanot (Israeli) -- Beautiful Hebrew love song by Pearl Rottenberg, with guitar and violin. [c 1958 Amitai Ne'eman]
14. Erev ba (Israeli) -- Popular dance tune, sung in counterpoint. [c 1960 Arieh Levanon, Oded Avissar]
15. Di mizinke oysgegebn (Yiddish / Klezmer) -- Wedding celebration song by Pearl, with clarinet and violin. [Written by Mark Warshawsky]
16. Doina (Romanian / Klezmer) -- Soulful clarinet improvisation & freylekhs by Isaac Sadigursky, with Stu Brotman on cymbalom & bass.
17. NAMA Freylekhs Medley (Klezmer) -- Happy old-world dance tunes on accordion and violin.
18. Moyshele, mayn fraynd (Yiddish) -- Nostalgic song about childhood, trumpet solo by Dan Sheehy. [Written by Mordecai Gebirtig]
19. A heymisher bulgar (Yiddish / Klezmer) -- Upbeat theater song, trumpet & clarinet solos, Phil on drums. [c 1947 Abraham Ellstein]
20. Dana dana dana & Dona Dona (Yiddish & American) -- Obscure Yiddish theater song that became a famous American 'folk song'. Yiddish sung by Sue Komoorian, English & guitar by Barbara Slade (a la Joan Baez). This is the original Yiddish version, which I have never seen or heard anywhere else. [Yiddish c 1940 Aaron Zeitlin, Sholom Secunda; English c 1956 Teddi Schwartz, Arthur Kevess] It was Schwartz who accidentally changed the vowel from "ah" to "oh"; she spelled it "dona" so it would be pronounced like our name "Don" (or "Dawn"), rather than "Dan". (Didn't work!)
21. Der nayer sher & Wedding Samba (Yiddish & American/Latin) -- Yiddish theater song that became a 'Mexican' samba! Sung in Yiddish and English, with Brazilian percussion by Eytan ben Sheviya. [Yiddish c 1940 Abraham Ellstein; English c 1948 Ellstein, Allan Small, Joseph Liebowitz]
22.
Tico-tico no
fuba (Brazilian & American,
Samba) --
Wonderful Carmen Miranda style rendition in Carioca Portuguese by Barbara
Slade (right), plus the patter-song English version. Bando da lua
guitar solo by Dan Ratkovich, percussion by Eytan. [Music 1917 Zequinha
Abreu; Portuguese c 1939 Aloysio Oliveira; English c 1943 Ervin
Drake]
23. Home in Pasadena (American) -- Delightful old-time melody and counterpoint, trombone and bass by Stu Brotman, violin by Agi Ban, David on piano. This is the official song of Pasadena CA (not widely known!). [c 1923 Harry Warren, Grant Clarke, Edgar Leslie]
24. Orange Blossom Special (American) -- A Rousing finish! (With the famous Ervin Rouse exhibition tune.) Three-part vocal, piano, and Loretta Kelley on the flying fast fiddle! [c 1938 Ervin Rouse]
Most of these are from our four LPs, NAMA 1-4, released 1974-82. Some (mostly dance tunes) have been digitally edited to be slower and/or shorter (as the folk dance population gets older!). This is old style folk and klezmer music, played on acoustic instruments, with no rock fusion. Extensive notes, photos, words & translations. CD length is nearly 74 minutes. Not a CD-R.
To order NAMA 5, send $15 per CD, plus $2 postage per order (in the U.S.) to:
David Owens, 1540 Broadway, Ann Arbor, MI 48105 * See below
One of our LPs, NAMA 2, is also still available. Mostly Balkan folk dances, with dance syllabus by Dick Crum. These are $5 each (plus $2 postage per order).
Questions, comments: (734) 662-5253*
Please note that during most of 2004, I am in Eagle Harbor MI rather than Ann Arbor. I do not have NAMA 2 LPs here. To check on availability of NAMA 5 from this location, please contact me at 906-289-4404 or Email at: DOwens (at) Pasty (dot) com.
(Yes, those should be @ and . with no spaces, but I'm trying to avoid being found by spider robots and deluged with spam, as I was on my previous Compuserve address.)